F.A.Q. – Registration of Churches
Here are some frequently asked questions about the Church in China taken from the Amity News Service.
What is the difference between a registered and an unregistered church? A registered congregation has chosen to comply with the government regulations for registration of places of worship and has met six general requirements. If anyone tries to infringe upon their rights under the law, they have legal grounds to seek rectification of the situation.
What are the six requirements for registration? 1-2) The congregation must have a fixed place and name. 3) There must be citizens who are religious believers regularly participating in religious activities. 4) They must have a management organization composed of citizens who are religious believers. 5) They must have persons meeting the requirements of the particular religious group to lead religious services. 6) They must have their own legal source of income.
Why are there still unregistered churches? Some congregations disagree theologically with any kind of civil registration for churches and therefore choose not to seek registration. Others are strongly committed to a narrowly defined set of theological beliefs and are not willing to have fellowship with other Christians who do not fully share their convictions. Additionally there are congregations which have applied for registration and are awaiting approval, and some which have applied and been denied because they do not meet one or more of the requirements above or because local officials have unfairly denied the registration. (There is a process to appeal the denial of an application to register.)
(Note: These questions and answers should be seen as information about the current condition of the “Church” in China and they are not endorsed by Project China)
F.A.Q. – Church Members
Here are some frequently asked questions about the Church in China taken from the Amity News Service.
How many Christians are there in China? How many belong to the registered churches? How many belong to unregistered churches? Because many congregations do not have membership lists, it is difficult to know the exact number of Christians in China or the comparative number belonging to registered and unregistered churches. There are at least eighteen million Protestant Christians and probably more.
Is it only old people who go to church? No. Although many worshipers are older, large numbers of younger people also attend and declare their faith in baptism. Some congregations also have Sunday School classes for children of Christian families.
Are the majority of believers women? There are more women than men in most of the congregations in China. The percentage of women is generally over 75% and there are a few areas where it may be as high as 90%.
Are any Chinese intellectuals involved in or interested in the church? Some intellectuals are believers and church members, and some, including some well-known poets and scholars, accept the Christian world view but are not members of the church.
(Note: These questions and answers should be seen as information about the current condition of the “Church” in China and they are not endorsed by Project China)